Sayonara, sinusitis

Suffer from sinusitis? Try some watermelon. Not in your nostrils (the seeds would tickle anyway). Eat it. It's full of a substance that may keep your nose unstuffed. A small pilot study done in the Netherlands found the "schnozzes" of sinusitis sufferers were running low on glutathione, an antioxidant compound found in watermelon, grapefruit, oranges, peaches, asparagus, potatoes, and broccoli. The cells that line your respiratory tract need glutathione and other antioxidants to keep free radicals-necessary but dangerous components of your defense system-in check.

According to Irwin Ziment, MD, respiratory expert and chief of medicine at Olive ViewD UCLA Medical Center, there's no proof yet that glutathione-rich foods keep sinusitis away. But adding more fruits and vegetables to your diet certainly won't harm you, he adds, and may be helpful in other ways.

For those who are already stricken with the condition (its hallmarks are a yellow, gray, or green nasal discharge and pain behind your eyes, on the side of your nose, or even in your teeth), you might try carefully sniffing the vapor of cooking chicken soup, eating it, or gargling with the broth, suggests Dr. Ziment. The soup contains cysteine, derived from chicken meat, which the body uses to make glutathione. l